Teenagers will soon be able to take an Uber alone for the first time. This week, the American company announced the launch in more than fifteen cities in the United States and Canada of "Uber teens", a new feature within its application. This will allow 13-17 year olds to order groceries freely, while offering them increased security.
Concretely, "Teens" accounts will be linked to a Family Profile listing all the members of a household using the application, and will therefore be linked to the blue card of their parents or legal guardians. From there, teenagers will have the freedom to request their own groceries. They will only be put in contact with experienced drivers, with particularly high ratings. When an order is validated, parents will immediately receive a notification on their mobile. Once the driver is at the pick-up location, teenagers will need to provide them with a unique PIN code so that they agree to pick them up. The final destination will be locked and no one but the traveler will be able to change it. Teenagers will have the right to travel accompanied by other young people over 13 years of age, provided that a parental certificate is provided by them.
Once the journey begins, several tools will ensure the safety of teenagers. First, they will be able to record the ride in audio via the app, and will receive a push notification called "RideCheck" during their trip asking if everything is running correctly. If this is not the case, young people will have the opportunity to call the police directly. Parents will have several options to follow the progress of their child, either through geolocated tracking, or by being able to call directly the driver in charge of the ride. Thus, "parents will have peace of mind," in the words of CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.
With its new feature, Uber is getting closer to a young and attractive clientele: already very familiar with new technologies, it represents a growth potential for the American tech giant. Until now, it was not possible for young people under the age of 18 to order groceries, and minors had to be accompanied by an adult to get into a car. However, the group intends to focus on the important safety measures that will govern the journeys of these young people. Although 99.9% of its rides in 2019 in the United States went smoothly according to one of its reports, Uber admitted to facing just over 6000,<> rape cases over two years across the Atlantic. Something to worry some parents.
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Among the cities hosting this brand new Uber device are New York, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Atlanta. It remains to be seen whether, in the event of a successful experiment, this functionality could be extended to other metropolises, or even in Europe.